İhsan Doğramacı facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
İhsan Doğramacı
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İhsan Doğramacı, 1996
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| Born | 3 April 1915 |
| Died | 25 February 2010 (aged 94) |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur, educationalist, philanthropist, paediatrician |
| Spouse(s) | Ayser Süleyman |
| Children | Ali Doğramacı (Son) and 2 others |
| Parent(s) | Doğramacızade Ali Pasha (Father) |
| Relatives | Mehmet Ali Kirdar (Grandfather) |
İhsan Doğramacı (born April 3, 1915 – died February 25, 2010) was a very important Turkish doctor who specialized in children's health. He was also a philanthropist, meaning he gave a lot of money to help others. He was an educationalist, someone who works to improve education, and he started many schools and universities.
Doğramacı was born in Erbil, which is now in Iraq, but was part of the Ottoman Empire back then. He became a world leader in child health and education. He founded two major universities in Ankara, Turkey: Bilkent University and Hacettepe University. He also held important roles in global organizations like UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO).
He was even offered top political jobs in Turkey, like being the Prime Minister, but he chose to focus on his work in medicine and education instead. He spoke many languages, including Turkish, English, French, German, Arabic, and Persian. He also wrote over 100 scientific articles and several books.
Contents
Helping the World: Global Organizations
İhsan Doğramacı worked with many international groups to improve health and education around the world. He was a Fellow of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in London. This means he was recognized as a top expert in child health.
He also helped create the Assembly of the Parliament of Cultures with Prince Hassan of Jordan. This group works to bring people from different cultures together. They want to promote understanding and peaceful discussions between thinkers from all over the world.
International Pediatric Association (IPA)
Doğramacı was a key leader in the International Pediatric Association (IPA). This organization brings together children's doctors from different countries. He was the president of the IPA from 1968 to 1977. Later, he became the honorary president, a title he held since 1992.
World Health Organization (WHO)
He played a big part in the World Health Organization (WHO). He was one of the people who signed the WHO's main document, called its Constitution, in 1946. He was the last person alive who had signed it! He also served on the WHO's executive board and helped with many programs for child health.
UNICEF
Doğramacı was very active in UNICEF, which helps children worldwide. He was a member of the UNICEF Executive Board for many years. He was even chosen to be the chairman of the board twice. He also led the Turkish National Committee for UNICEF for a long time. He gave a lot of his own money to support UNICEF's "Let's Go to School, Girls" campaign in Turkey.
Making a Difference in Turkey
İhsan Doğramacı grew up in modern Turkey, which was being shaped by its founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Doğramacı wanted to help his country grow, especially in medicine and education. He worked hard to make these fields better, even when it was difficult.
Leading Higher Education
He was the first president of the Council of Higher Education of Turkey (YÖK). This council oversees all universities in Turkey. He held this important position from 1981 to 1992. He also led the board of trustees at Middle East Technical University and was the rector (like a university president) at Ankara University.
Hacettepe University: A Medical Hub
Doğramacı became a professor of children's medicine in 1955. That same year, he started a special department for child health at Ankara University Medical School. This grew into the Child Health Institute and Hospital, which helped people and trained new doctors.
In 1967, his efforts led to the official founding of Hacettepe University. He gave a lot of his own money to build new campuses for the university. Today, Hacettepe University is one of Turkey's best public universities, especially for medical studies.
Bilkent University: A New Kind of School
Doğramacı also wanted to create private universities in Turkey. After new laws made this possible, he founded Bilkent University in 1984. It was the first private university in Turkey.
To help fund Bilkent, he started companies like Tepe Construction. All the money from these companies now goes to the university. He even gave almost all of his personal wealth to Bilkent University. His family members also gave up their rights to the companies to support the university. Bilkent University is now one of the top universities in Turkey and is recognized globally.
Doğramacı also started other educational projects linked to Bilkent. He opened special high schools in eastern Turkey to help students there. He also gave scholarships to many university students studying medicine and music for over 40 years.
The Foreign Policy Institute at Bilkent University gives an award called the İhsan Doğramacı Prize for International Relations for Peace. This award honors people who work for peace around the world.
With his wife, Ayser Doğramacı, he used their family's money to support education and health projects. He also focused on his birthplace, Erbil. The Ihsan Dogramaci Erbil Foundation built a special school there, and the first students started classes in 2010.
Personal Life
İhsan Doğramacı came from an important family. His father, Doğramacızade Ali Pasha, was the Mayor of Erbil. His grandfather, Mehmet Ali Kirdar, was a member of the Ottoman Parliament.
He married Ayser Süleyman in 1942. They had three children. His son, Ali Doğramacı, was the rector of Bilkent University for many years. His grandson-in-law, Abdullah Atalar, is now the rector.
Passing Away
İhsan Doğramacı passed away on February 25, 2010, at Hacettepe University Hospital in Ankara. He was 94 years old.
Awards and Honors
İhsan Doğramacı received many awards and honors from different countries and organizations for his amazing work.
Orders and Decorations
- 1976 –
Dominican Republic : Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella - 1977 –
France : National Order of the Legion of Honour - 1979 –
Finland : Order of the Lion of Finland - 1989 –
Poland : Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland - 1989 – France : Médaille de la Ville de Paris (Medal of the City of Paris)
- 1990 – Dominican Republic : Grand Cross Order of Christopher Columbus
- 1995 –
Turkey : State Medal of Distinguished Service - 1997 –
Romania : Medal for Merit - 1997 –
World Health Organization : Golden Medal Health For All - 2000 –
Azerbaijan : First Class of Istiglal Order - 2000 –
Estonia : Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana - 2005 – Azerbaijan : Heydar Aliyev Order
- 2005 – Turkey : Golden Medal of Sevda-Cenap Music Foundation Honor Award
- 2009 –
Iraq : Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Commendation Medal - 2009 –
Egypt : Medal of Egyptian People's Assembly
Awards
- 1978 – Turkey : TÜBİTAK Service Award
- 1981 – World Health Organization : Léon Bernard Foundation Prize
- 1986 –
United States : Christopherson Award (American Academy of Pediatrics) - 1995 –
UNICEF : Maurice Pate Award - 1995 –
Greece : Soranus of Science and Friendship Award - 1998 –
Council of Europe : “Peace, Justice and Tolerance" Prize - 1999 – Turkey : Health and Education Award
- 2000 – Turkey : Distinguished Service Award (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey)
- 2004 –
Japan : Dr. Ju Shichiro Naito International Child Health Award - 2007 – Turkey : Honor Award of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey
- 2009 – Turkey : Award of Islamic Organization for Medical Sciences
